Pronunciation

How to pronounce “closed

“closed” is pronounced /kloʊzd/ (KLOHZD) in American English and /kləʊzd/ in British English — one syllable.
The sound

Say “closed” in one beat

Say it like this

closed

/kloʊzd/

The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /kləʊzd/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.

1 beat
  1. closedkloʊzd
IPA (American)
/kloʊzd/
IPA (British)
/kləʊzd/
Respelling
KLOHZD
Syllables
1 — closed
Stress
One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /kloʊzd/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.
Part of speech
verb, adjective
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/kloʊzd/

British

/kləʊzd/

No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.

Meaning

What “closed” means

  1. verb

    move so that an opening or passage is obstructed; make shut

    Close the door

  2. verb

    become closed

    The windows closed with a loud bang

  3. verb

    cease to operate or cause to cease operating

    The owners decided to move and to close the factory

Say it in a sentence

The bakery closed early because of the heavy snow.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

5 sounds, in the order you say them

Each sound has its own page: where the tongue goes, what it is usually confused with, and words to drill it on.

Questions

closed”, answered

How do you pronounce “closed”?

“closed” is pronounced /kloʊzd/ (KLOHZD) in American English and /kləʊzd/ in British English — one syllable. It is one unbroken piece — /kloʊzd/ — with no pause anywhere inside it.

How many syllables does “closed” have?

One, despite the 2 vowel letters in the spelling. The whole word is /kloʊzd/ — a single beat.

Is “closed” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /kloʊzd/ (KLOHZD); British English says /kləʊzd/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “closed” mean?

As a verb: move so that an opening or passage is obstructed; make shut For example: “Close the door” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “closed”?

One syllable, so the whole word carries the beat — say /kloʊzd/ in one unbroken piece rather than clipping the vowel.

Practise this word

Now say “closed” and see every sound

Record it once and sayit lines your audio up against the target sound by sound — what landed, what slipped, and what it sounded like instead.